How to turn off Facebook's new facial recognition feature

Facial recognition-based features are nothing new to Facebook. The company has used facial recognition for some time now to suggest friends to tag in photos. In December, however, the company announced it's expanding its facial recognition features to help combat fake accounts using another person's photos, and to alert users whenever a photo or video is posted with him or her in it.

Admittedly, there's a part of me that likes the idea of getting an alert whenever my photo is posted on Facebook. Knowing that if someone is trying to impersonate me (yeah, right!) or someone captured a moment without me realizing is appealing.

But the idea of Facebook scanning every photo and using facial recognition is sure to upset some people. Thankfully, Facebook is giving us the option to opt out of the feature altogether.

At the time of the feature was announced, Facebook promised every user would have a dedicated button that made it possible to opt in or out of the feature. This week, Facebook has finally added the proper setting, making the process crystal clear.

On a phone, open the Facebook app and tap on the overflow button (three line icon). Then go to Settings > Privacy Shortcuts > More Settings > FaceRecognition, then tap on the Face Recognition question. Finally, select No.